August 26th, 2010

It had been a day since Winter killed her roommate, she was still trying to get through that. Michael had brought the four of them to his parents house. Supposedly, Michael and Sam's parents had gone on vacation to California. Michael tried getting ahold of them, but couldn't. Winter tried to talk to her own parents, but like Michael, she couldn't reach them. Winter was sitting on the couch with her head in her hands. She felt someone sit beside her

"Hey, you've got to eat" A voice said beside her. She hadn't eaten since yesterday, she was still sick to her stomach

"I'm not hungry" She said

"Can you just eat a little bit?" Sam asked her. Winter shook her head. Michael turned on the TV

"We have reports of an incident in California. Thirty-seven year old, Thomas McNeil's car flipped over a guardrail. The freeway was backed up due to this incident. As paramedics tried to treat the injured man, the man bit one of the paramedics. The man then went on to attack nearby officers and firemen. The police shot the man several times in the chest, however the man did not die, he kept moving until an officer shot him in the head. We are unsure if this has something to do with the Wildfire Virus. Please, avoid contact with others and stay tuned for more information" A reporter said as they showed a video of the incident

"Oh, my God.. H-How is that even possible?" Amy asked

"It's over.. is the world ending?" Winter asked herself

"I'm sure the CDC can fix this" Sam said

"People are murdering each other. How can they fix this?!" Amy asked

"Well, what do you want me to do?! Say, fuck it why don't we just kill ourselves?!" Sam asked angrily

"Hey, you need to chill out" Michael said to Sam

"Me?! Un-fucking-believable" Sam said as he shook his head

"We all need to take chill pills, okay? Getting all worked up isn't going to solve anything. So let's all take breaths" Michael said

August 27th, 2010

Winter laid in bed as she just stared at the wall. She hadn't really or gotten much sleep. She couldn't sleep. The image of her roommate was stuck in her head. Everytime she closed her eyes, she could see it. She heard someone enter the room. She felt them sit down on the bed

"Hey.. do you want to get out of bed?" Sam asked

"Not really" Winter responded. She heard Sam get ready to say something but he stopped. Winter looked over at Sam who was staring at the wall. He had a worried look on his face. His hands were shaking as he did his best to cope with everything that was going. Winter couldn't understand why he would pretend to be okay, if he wasn't

"I- um.." Sam trailed off as he made eye contact with Winter. He then looked away

"I know.. this is all really hard.. God, it's really hard.. I can't stop shaking.. I'm scared, and I-I don't know what to do.. But.. I have to keep going.. even if I don't want to.. I don't have a choice.." Sam said as he moved around the bed, to lay beside Winter. He laid on his back as he stared at the ceiling

"I need you to know that you're not in this alone.. What you did.. it was necessary.. it was us or her.. She was gonna kill us.." Sam said. Winter didn't respond

"I.. um.. I'm here if you need me.." Sam said softly. The smallest smile appeared on Winter's face

"Thanks.." She muttered. Sam decided he wanted to change the subject

"You know.. at least you don't have to do that six-page essay now" Sam said trying to lighten the mood. Winter appreciated what he was trying to do. Winter turned her body so she was facing Sam

"Maybe if the world really is ending, I won't ever have to do taxes again" Winter said

"God, Michael is probably betting on that. If it weren't for me, Michael would've been arrested for tax fraud" Sam said which made Winter laughed

"Seems like Michael would be lost without you" Winter told him with a small smile. Sam's smile faded as he shook his head

"No, it's the other way around. I wouldn't be able to live without Michael. He's the only reason I have the strength to not give up hope" Sam said

August 28th, 2010

Winter had gotten out of bed. It was early in the morning. She entered the dining room and saw that Michael, Amy and Sam were eating. Amy seemed rather surprised to see Winter

"Are you hungry?" She asked. Michael turned and looked at Winter

"You finally decide to join us?" Michael asked. Winter didn't respond as she made herself a small plate. She sat beside Sam. Michael didn't take offense to her silence

"Hey, we're getting somewhere atleast. Also, they set up a refugee center. I think we should go there" Michael said

"We're leaving?" Winter asked

"We can't just stay here forever. Plus, safety in numbers" Michael said

"The military can protect us" Sam said

"My sister could be there" Amy said

"Then, let's bring everything we need, and head to the refugee center" Michael said

"Are we bringing weapons?" Sam asked

"Of course we are" Michael said

"Will that even be allowed? Wouldn't they have security measures in place?" Amy asked

"Maybe in another state they would, but this is Georgia, almost half the damn state owns a gun" Michael said. Sam finished eating and then left. He came back with two rifles and a handgun. Winter, Michael and Amy finished eating. Michael stood up and walked towards Sam. Sam tossed one of the rifles to Michael

"Either of you know how to shoot a gun?" Michael asked

"I do" Winter said

"I didn't know that" Sam said

"My dad liked to hunt" Winter responded. Sam walked over and gave her the handgun

"Okay, everyone pack a bag of whatever you think we might need, and let's get the hell out of here" Michael said. Everyone had dispersed. Winter wasn't feeling like herself still, but she had gained the motivation to keep moving on. Though, she would probably never forget what she had done. It wasn't something she could forgive herself for

Sam and the other three had gathered everything they believed was necessary

"Okay, ladies. Let's get this show on the road" Michael said as he put on a pair of sunglasses. Sam rolled his eyes at his older brother. The four left exited the Murray house and put their belongings into the truck. Then, everyone got in. Michael and Amy were in the front while Sam and Winter were in the back. Michael began to drive towards where the refugee camp was stationed. Amy turned on the radio, while Winter looked out the window

Sam wasn't sure what he was going to do. Honestly, in his entire life, he had never felt so lost until now. But, that was to be expected, I mean everything he knew about the world suddenly changed. For Sam, it was especially hard because everything he worked so hard for was now gone. It had only been a couple days since the start of the entire thing, but Sam knew that things wouldn't go back. He was hopeful but he wasn't stupid. He had done the probability of it all. There was hope for a cure, but he knew that majority of the population wouldn't live to see it

He knew that society as a whole was close to completely collapsing, but out of fear of everyone else's mental states, he didn't voice these opinions. Sam sometimes wished he could be like Michael. To live without a care in the world. Like everyday was his last day. But, he couldn't and he would probably never be able to. Sam was too realistic for that. Michael had made a sharp turn causing everyone to move in their seats. Sam felt a weight on his shoulder. He turned to see that Winter was sleeping. She hadn't put on her seatbelt which is why she made it that close to Sam. He looked at her with a small smile

He was relieved that she was finally getting some sleep. Maybe she could forget about all of us in her dream world. Michael looked through the rear-view mirror and a smirk appeared on his face

"I didn't pick you as the type to prey on women when they're most vulnerable" Michael said with a chuckle. Sam rolled his eyes and flipped off Michael

"Oh, you know I'm just messing with you. It's good that she's finally getting some sleep. So be still as a statue. Don't wake her up, she needs this" Michael said. Eventually, they had arrived at the refugee camp. There was a long line of people waiting to get in

"Well, this is our stop. God, I'm gonna miss this car. I love you, Delilah" Michael said as he talked to his car. Sam shook his head at his brother's antics. Sam softly nudged Winter awake. Her eyes opened and she lifted her head up. She realized that she had been sleeping on Sam. She rubbed her eyes

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to fall asleep on you" Winter said

"No, no. It's cool. I'm glad you got some sleep" Sam had told her

"Okay, as much as I love your bonding time. Let's hurry the hell up so we can actually get in line" Michael said. The four exited the car and grabbed their things. Then, there was a yell

"Amy?! Amy is that you?!" A feminine voice yelled. Amy turned and then dropped her bag. She went running towards the female voice

"Andrea!" Amy yelled as she hugged the woman. She was quite a bit older than Amy and had blonde hair and blue eyes

"God, I have been worried sick about you. The phone lines went down and I couldn't call you" Andrea said

"Yeah, I know. I tried calling you too, but don't worry, I'm okay. I met some really good people at the university" Amy said before pointing towards her little group. Michael had a smirk on his face

"You did not tell me you had a smoking hot older sister. Hi, I'm Michael, but you can call me whatever you want" Michael said as he held his hand out for Andrea. He then winked at her. Andrea was caught off guard

"Can you not think with your dick for like five seconds?" Sam asked as he pinched the bridge of his nose. Sam then made eye contact with Andrea

"I apologize for my older brother. My name's Sam Murray, and that's Winter Steele" Sam told her. She smiled and held out her hand

"Andrea Harrison. I'm Amy's older sister" Andrea said as she and Sam shook hands

"Shouldn't we get in line?" Winter asked

"Fuck, I forgot. See, that's what happens when you're surrounded by beautiful women" Michael said. Winter just sighed. The now group of five were in line. They got closer to the entrance, little by little until they had eventually made it. They were all checked for any wounds, or any symptoms before being allowed to enter. When they had finally arrived in, they were amazed to see how many people were already there. They had a bunch of tents set up. Sam hoped that, this place would last, but then again, nothing lasts forever

(1944 words)
11/23/22